The questions that guided this work were: 1) How do energy inputs, outputs, and energy indices evolve during the last four decades along the rainfall gradient of the Pampas, 2) How does present ...agrochemical and fertilizer use in Argentina resemble, or differ, from other main grain producing regions with large no-till surfaces?, and 3) How do energy fluxes vary when soil organic carbon (SOC) changes during the last four decades are included? Energy balances (outputs – inputs), energy efficiencies (outputs/inputs) and energy intensities (inputs/yield) were calculated. Inputs comprised agrochemicals and fertilizers, machinery used for soil tillage and fuel use and gathered from different information sources. Outputs included yield of main crops from national statistics. Calculations were performed for four areas along a rainfall gradient during the 1970–2015 period. Energy coefficients were collected from literature. Soil organic carbon changes of the upper soil profile meter were available from a previous publication. Total input averages per area were low although increased 62% after four decades, from 6.6 GJ ha−1 in the past up to 10.5 GJ ha−1 at present with no marked differences between areas. Agrochemicals comprised 49% of total energy input, a very large proportion compared to other regions mainly related to the large surface under no-tillage while fertilizer rates were low. Average energy outputs increased 51% with time and all energy balances were positive. Energy efficiencies had an optimum during 1995 of 4.8 decreasing afterwards down to 3.7. Energy intensities decreased and at present 14% less input energy was needed per t DM yield produced. Two areas gained SOC and one lost large amounts. Inclusion of SOC losses in energy quantifications turned all energy indices to negative values therefore providing a real scenario of what happened with energy fluxes after four decades of agriculture which otherwise would be ignored.
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•Total input energy in the Pampas increased 62% and outputs 51% after four decades.•Agrochemicals comprised 49% of total energy input at present.•Herbicide rate was the largest worldwide along with the no-till surface.•Energy balances, efficiencies and intensities were always positive.•Soil organic carbon losses inclusion resulted in negative energy indices.
Antimicrobial susceptibility of clinical isolates collected from sites in central Europe in 2019 was tested by CLSI broth microdilution method and EUCAST breakpoints. Most active were amikacin, ...ceftazidime-avibactam and colistin; respectively, susceptibility rates among
P. aeruginosa
(n = 701) were 89.2%, 92.2% and 99.9%; difficult-to-treat (DTR) isolates, 62.5%, 37.5% and 100%; multidrug-resistant (MDR) isolates, 68.3%, 72.9% and 99.5%; meropenem-resistant (MEM-R), metallo-β-lactamase-negative (MBL-negative) isolates, 72.8%, 78.6% and 100%. Among
Enterobacterales
(
n
= 1639), susceptibility to ceftazidime-avibactam, colistin and tigecycline was ≥ 97.9%; MDR
Enterobacterales
, 96.8%, 94.4% and 100%, respectively; DTR isolates, ≥ 76.2% to ceftazidime-avibactam and colistin; MEM-R, MBL-negative isolates, ≥ 90.0% to ceftazidime-avibactam and colistin.
Hypoxia‐inducible factors (HIFs) belong to a family of transcription factors (TF) responsive to a low O2 availability, which is often a characteristic feature of solid tumors. The alpha subunit of ...the HIF heterodimer is O2‐sensitive, and once stabilized in hypoxia, it functions as a master regulator of various genes involved in hypoxia pathway. Changes in the HIF1A (hypoxia inducible factor 1, alpha subunit) nucleotide sequence or expression has been shown to be associated with the development of several diseases. Because of increasing research interest in HIF1A gene a review of association studies was needed. We here reviewed published data on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in HIF1A in various diseases; in total, 34 SNPs were tested for an association with 49 phenotypes, and the results were visualized using the Cytoscape software. Among all collected polymorphisms 16 SNPs showed significant associations with 40 different phenotypes, including six SNPs associated with 14 cancer types. Missense SNPs (rs11549465 and rs11549467) within the oxygen‐dependent degradation domain were most frequently studied. The study provides a comprehensive tool for researchers working in this area and may contribute to more accurate disease diagnosis and identification of therapeutic targets.
The bronze artefacts of cultural heritage are often covered with patina, a layer of corrosion products, which confers their aesthetic and also protects the substrate bronze. Due to the increasing ...atmospheric pollution these layers are often dissolving when exposed in urban environment. In this work we propose the use of an innoxious imidazole compound as a corrosion inhibitor for patinated bronze. On a Cu–6Sn (wt%) bronze, three types of patinas were synthesized: two by chemical methods (in a sulphate solution and a chloride one) and one by an electrochemical process (in a sulphate/carbonate solution). A blue-green patina was obtained in all three cases, and their morphological and structural characterization was performed by SEM, EDS and Raman spectroscopy. It was found that the sulphate patina is composed essentially of brochantite, the chloride patina of atacamite, and the electrochemical patina of malachite. All three patinas have also a smooth part of surface consisted of cuprite. As corrosion inhibitor 4-methyl-1-(
p-tolyl) imidazole was used on all patinas, in a solution of 0.2
g
L
−1 Na
2SO
4
+
0.2
g
L
−1 NaHCO
3 acidified to pH 5 which simulates acid rain in urban environment. The results have shown that the inhibitor improves the stability of all three kinds of patinas and can be recommended for protection of works of art.
The milk and mammary gland (MG) microbiome can be influenced by several factors, such as mode of delivery, breastfeeding, maternal lifestyle, health status, and diet. An increasing number of studies ...show a variety of positive effects of consumption of probiotics during pregnancy and breastfeeding on the mother and the newborn. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of oral administration of probiotics Lactobacillus gasseri K7 (LK7) and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) during pregnancy and lactation on microbiota of the mouse mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN), MG, and milk. Pregnant FVB/N mice were fed skim milk or probiotics LGG or LK7 resuspended in skim milk during gestation and lactation. On d 3 and 8 postpartum, blood, feces, MLN, MG, and milk were analyzed for the presence of LGG or LK7. The effects of probiotics on MLN, MG, and milk microbiota was evaluated by real-time PCR and by 16S ribosomal DNA 454-pyrosequencing. In 5 of 8 fecal samples from the LGG group and in 5 of 8 fecal samples from the LK7 group, more than 1×103 of live LGG or LK7 bacterial cells were detected, respectively, whereas no viable LGG or LK7 cells were detected in the control group. Live lactic acid bacteria but no LGG or LK7 were detected in blood, MLN, and MG. Both probiotics significantly increased the total bacterial load as assessed by copies of 16S ribosomal DNA in MLN, and a similar trend was observed in MG. Metagenomic sequencing revealed that both probiotics increased the abundance of Firmicutes in MG, especially the abundance of lactic acid bacteria. The Lactobacillus genus appeared exclusively in MG from probiotic groups. Both probiotics influenced MLN microbiota by decreasing diversity (Chao1) and increasing the distribution of species (Shannon index). The LGG probiotic also affected the MG microbiota as it increased diversity and distribution of species and proportions of the genera Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. These results provide evidence that probiotics can modulate the bacterial composition of MLN and MG microbiota in ways that could improve the health of the MG and, ultimately, the health of the newborn.
Introduction: Neuropathic pain is a widespread problem with a big impact on quality of life. The currently used drug regimens are often insufficiently effective or cause--sometimes unacceptable--side ...effects. Intravenous lidocaine could be an alternative treatment, by blocking spontaneous depolarization and hyperexcitability in upregulated sodium channels in nociceptors. Research so far has shown varying results but the treatment protocols differed a lot and follow-up was usually short. In our hospital, lidocaine infusions have been applied for many years in a unique treatment protocol consisting of a relatively high dose of lidocaine (1000 mg) administered over 25 hours. Our aim is to share information on both the efficacy and safety of this treatment schedule. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study in all patients who received a lidocaine infusion between January 2014 and January 2018. The standard infusion protocol consists of a total of 1000 mg lidocaine administered intravenously during 25 hours (40 mg/hour). Pain diagnoses were stratified into 15 groups, in agreement with diagnoses used in daily practice. Effectiveness of the treatment was classified as effect or no effect based on the description found in the chart. Results: We included 282 patients, with a median age of 58 years and 64% of whom were female. Patients with myofascial pain syndrome, peripheral (mono)neuropathy, small fiber neuropathy and vascular disease benefited most. Patients with cancer pain, postherpetic neuralgia, chemotherapy-induced neuropathy and radicular pain showed the least pain improvement. There were no serious adverse events. Conclusion: In selected patients, lidocaine infusions may be a safe and efficacious treatment for chronic neuropathic pain. More prospective research is needed to further determine the optimal dosing, duration and interval of lidocaine infusion therapy, and to better understand in which specific patient categories this treatment is most beneficial. Keywords: chronic pain, neuropathic pain, intravenous, lidocaine
Raširenost kompleksnih ugljikohidrata i glikokonjugata u prirodi odraz je važnosti koju takvi spojevi imaju u procesima međustaničnog prijenosa informacija. Poznavanje složenih procesa na ...molekularnoj razini i struktura molekula koje su u njega uključene preduvjeti su za razumijevanje uloge glikokonjugata u prirodi te uspješnu intervenciju u slučaju bolesti, dakle za razvoj odgovarajućih terapeutika.
Za bolje razumijevanje bioloških procesa u kojima sudjeluju kompleksne ugljikohidratne molekule od velike su važnosti modelni sustavi koji omogućuju spoznavanje mehanizama kemijskih reakcija i biomolekularnih procesa. Prednost takvih modela je dobra strukturna definiranost, za razliku od biomakromolekula koje se odlikuju heterogenošću u strukturi i konformaciji. U ovom radu dan je prikaz opsežnih istraživanja koja uključuju kemijske preinake peptida s ciljem dobivanja bioaktivnih glikokonjugata različitih struktura. Nadalje, objašnjen je utjecaj šećernog dijela molekule i pojedinih strukturnih parametara na fizikalno-kemijska svojstva, biološku aktivnost i stabilnost ishodnih bioaktivnih peptidnih spojeva.
Značaj spontane reakcije raznih prirodnih amino-spojeva (peptidi, proteini) s karbonilnim spojevima (ugljikohidrati, oksoaldehidi), kako u biološkim sustavima tako i u prehrambenoj industriji, još uvijek nije potpuno razjašnjen. Stoga će biti predstavljena istraživanja koja se odnose na određivanje čimbenika koji utječu na raspodjelu produkata neenzimske glikacije endogenog opioidnog peptida, Leu-enkefalina s aldoheksozama. Razumijevanje tih spontanih reakcija i izolirani modelni spojevi omogućit će praćenje i objašnjenje kompleksnih procesa kojima podliježu peptidi/proteini na molekularnoj razini u prisustvu šećera te utjecaj glikacije na fiziološko djelovanje ishodnog amino-spoja.
Cultural bronze artefacts are exposed in indoor or outdoor environment. They often suffer of a substantial alteration due to an increasing atmospheric pollution. In this work, we propose the use of ...some innoxious compounds as corrosion inhibitors of bronze objects covered with patina. The bronze used was Cu–6Sn (in wt.%). This composition was selected after a preliminary work on several archaeological bronzes found in Transylvania, Romania, dated from the Late Neolithic to Roman periods. First, an artificial patina was formed on Cu–6Sn bronze under potential regulation, in 0.2
g
L
−1 NaHCO
3
+
0.2
g
L
−1 Na
2SO
4 aqueous solution (pH 8), during 4 days. A pale blue to green patina was obtained and characterized using EDS and Raman spectroscopy. Then, four innoxious organic substances were examined as corrosion inhibitors: 5
mM 4-methyl-1-(
p-tolyl)-imidazole (TMI), 10
mM 1-phenyl 4-methyl-imidazole (PMI), 1
mM 2-mercapto 5-R-acetylamino-1,3,4-thiadiazole (MAcT), 1
mM 2-mercapto 5-R-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole (MAT), and for comparison 1
mM benzotriazole (BTA). The impedance spectra collected showed, for all of them, three depressed capacitive loops. On the basis of these capacitance values, these loops were allocated to the surface film with ionic conduction, the double layer capacitance with the charge transfer resistance, and the oxidation–reduction process involving the surface patina. TMI and MAcT were found to be efficient inhibitors though their performances are significantly lower than that of BTA.
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